Marking machine



June 25, 1940. QEQEDWRDS 2,205,399

v MARKING MACHINE Filed may 17, 1937 Z'VSheets-Sheet l VME/WUR' fra-344 42%; M

c.v E. Elnvymuansl 2,205,399 I IARKING MACHINE Filed May 17, 1937 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 m IgM 0.7%@

Patented June 25, 1940 chulo. E. adwords, Beverly,

United Shoe Mac of Flemington. Jersey almorto hinery Corporation, Borough N. J., a corporation of New Application my 11, im, soriai No. l142,114

20Cl8ims.

This invention relates to marking machinesand is herein illustrated as embodied in a machine. of the type employing both type disks and interchangeable type Pieces, such as is extensively employed in shoe factories, for example, for

marking sizes and lot numbers which are to be assembled to form a complete shoe. In this sort of a machine, the work is laid on a work-supporting table and the mark is applied by a head which is oscillated into contact with the work by power supplied through a pitman.

Pieces of work which are presented to such a machine are of varying character, being sometimes made 8f textile material and at other times of upper leather. Such leather for shoe uppers may vary radically in thickness between the thin, light kids which are employed in women's shoes and the heavy scotch grain or Cordovan leathers which are employed in mens shoes. Uniform marking on materials of such varying characterbeen easily obtained. Further--V more, where the marking members are heated, it is frequently desired to be able to vary the dwell of the members on the work and usually this could not be accomplished without at the same time causing a substantial variation in the pressure applied.

Accordingly, one important object of the -invention is to provide an improved machine having flexible .operating characteristics such that it is possible to vary the dwell of the members on the work without substantial change in the applied pressure.

This object is accomplished, in accordance with a feature of the invention, by the provision of an adjustably fixed work support together with an operating pitman for the oscillatable marking head, which pitman has a slidable connection to one of the parts to which it is connected and embodies yielding pressure-transmitting members or springs, the tension of which may be readily changed by an associated adjusting means.

Still another object of the invention is to provide a machine, utilizing both type disks and loose type pieces, in which the interchange of type pieces is greatly facilitated and in which the wear on the parts is lessened. n

'I'his object is realized, in accordance with other features of the invention, by an improved construction of a supporting member for the auxiliary type pieces, the construction of the pieces themselves, a preheater designed to maintain the pieces at operating temperature, by the construc- 55 tion of operating and detent pawls which are ason the loosepartssociated with the type disks, and by improved .means for applying heat to the type disks. These and other features of the invention will best be understood from.

a consideration of the following description, taken the accompanying drawings,

in connection with 5 in which Fig. 1 is an angular view, showing the machine as `a whole;

Fig. 2 is an the loose type pieces;

angular view of a .preheater for through the head of the machine, showing a sup- Dressed position;

Fig. 4 is a bottom view of the head of the 15 machine:

Fig. 5 is a rear elevation of the marking headdetached from its hanger;

Fig. 6 is aview on a reduced scale of the yield-l ing pitmari between the walking beam.;

crankshaft and the 2o Fig. 7 is a fragmentary angular view oi a portion of a type disk, showing an operating pawl associated therewith, in its Figt 8 is an angular view oi'- viewed from a different direction associated therewith a d againstl rotation, the latter position with respect to the type of the type This machine is `Patent of the United States No. 960,029, granted May 31, 1910, 'on

the application of F. W. Merrick, and, as in that machine, pieces of work laid ori a work table carried on a marking head for up-and-down movement toward and from the work suspended by means of lll are printed by'type members I2. This is supported away table by means of a hanger Il pointed screws from the forward arm of a walking beam i6 which is pivotally supported between si of a frame 22. The markinghead I2 de members I 8 and'2l 40 is always held in a substantially vertical position during its up-and-down movement, being guided by a pivoted arm 24 as oscillations are imparted to the walking beam I6 by tached to a crank 12 28. drive shaft `(not shown) 'to which erate the machine.

effected by a clutch to a treadle through chine may be operated t cycles while the treadle is means of a pitman 26 at- 45 6) on the crank shaft This shaft is connected by gears ao 'to a a2 which is provided with a pulley power is supplied to op- Control of the machine is mechanism 34, connected a rod I8, so that the mahrough one or more depressed and will be u 10 Fig. 3 is a vertical, front-to-back section always stopped in the same position when the treadle is released.

The cycle of operation of the machine is such that the marking head I2 is raised slightly 5 thereby permitting ink to be applied to the type members from a ribbon 48 positioned above a pad 42 which is carried on a pad arm 44 extending forwardly from. a cross rod 48. The arm is joined to the hanger |4by an arm 45 (Fig. 3) having an adjustable eccentric pivot stud 41. The mark. ing head then descends and the pad arm 44 is moved downwardly to the rear as the type members are brought into contact with the work and then raised to bring the head to its stop position, substantially as shown in Fig. 1. The inking ribbon 48 passes over a roller (not shown) atthe forward end of the arm 44 and beneath a curved guard 48, by whichaccidental contact with the work or the operators hands is avoided. The ribbon 48 extends between an upper spool 48 and a lower spool (not shown), the arrangement being such that the ribbon is moved forward step by step at each oscillation of the arrn 44 by mechanism shown and described completely in Letters Patent of the United States No. 2,111,556, granted March 22, 1938, upon an application led in the name of R. A. Crosby for improvements in Marking machines.

The work support I8 having a resilient pad 58 80 is supported on a vertical plate 52 which has removable side plates 54 forming guides which' cooperate with vertical ribs at the sides of the end of a horizontal arm 58. This arm is pivoted at the rear of the side members I8 and 28 and may 85 be adjusted with respect to the base of the frame 22 by means of a supporting screw 58 to bring the work support into parallelism with the marking characters on the head I2. Adjustment of -the work support I8 vertically with respect to this arm 58 is eiected by means of a hand wheel 88 having a threaded sternv 82 coacting with a lug 84 on the forward end of the arm 58.

The pitman 28 has an upper crosshead 88 (Fig. 6) pivoted on the rear arm of the walking beam I8 and a lower crosshead 88 pivoted at 18 on the crank 12. These upper and lower crossheads 88 and 88 are joined by parallel rods 14 rmly secured to the lower crosshead 88 and provided with nuts forming heads 18 which limit theup- 5o ward movement of the upper crosshead .88 and therefore determine the length of theA pitman. Surrounding the rods 14 are helical springs 18, one on each rod, the upper ends of which abut the lower side of the crosshead 88 and the lower ends of which abut` a slide block 88 mounted on the A rods 14 and adjustable in position with respect to the lower crosshead 88 by means of a screw 82 which 'is threaded in the block 88 and which has a head 84 provided with sockets to 6() receive a pin or a spanner wrench. Inasmuch as the length of the pitman is determined by the heads 18 at the upper ends of the side rods 14, the path of movement of the marking head remains unchanged regardless of the adjustment of the spring tension. It is then possible, with a single piece of work on the work support. to vary the dwell or interval during which the marking members stay in contact with the work, by raising or lowering the work support by means of the hand V screw 88.- In addition, moreover, it is possible by adjusting the tension of the relatively light springs18 to enable the machine to be used for' stacked work in which a dozenA or teen pieces a are placed under the marking head and then are q. .removed one by one, for example, allowing each rmsmndie ne is attached to a thin plate' m "lo projecting teeth on the half-'size disk |18. ,u

top piece oi' the stack to be printed. Under. such conditions, the marking position mayvary vertically as much as an inch but the change in the compression of the springs 18 corresponding to this variation is so small compared with the total 5 pressure which the springs normally exert that the printed impressions are made with great uniformity. I l

Turning. then to the marking head I2, it will be seen that this comprises a frame having a 10 top plate 88 (Fig. 5), through which pass screws vto attach the head to the hanger I4, and side plates 88 and 88, between which extend both a bracing member 82 and hollow sleeves 84 and 88 arranged to rotate together by reason of a key l5 88. 'I'he'inner of these sleeves is integral with a pinion |88 meshing with another pinion |82 to which there is attached a heat-insulated hand wheel |84 (Fig. 1). Type disks |88, |88, ||8, etc., are rotatable on this outer sleeve 84, being 20 ,frictionally engaged therewith so that the turning of the sleeve effects the turning of such type disks as have been released from the finger-operated, spring-pressed, pivoted detents, the handles I4 of which are shown in Fig. 1. For the sake of 25 simplicity of illustration, only three of these type disks have been shown in Figs. 4 and 5, and the remaining space has been iilled by means of spacing sleeves II8, the length of which depends on the number of type disks employed,A the whole assemblage being held together by means of lock nuts II8. Heat is transmitted to the type disks from a specially constructed heating cartridge |28, the winding of which'isso arranged that there are fewer turns at the central portion 85 thereofthan at the end portions. This construction is desirable for the reason that the type disks at the end lose heat faster by conduction through the metal ofthe head 88 than do those at the center of the head. The cartridge is heldin posi'l 40 tion by a clamp |2| which is screwed to the side frame 88.

The particular type disks |88, |88 and ||8 are those which are employedfor the purpose of marking the sizes and half sizes on shoes, the 45 digits on the type disks |88 and |88 running from 0 and 1 to 9. These peripheral printing characters |22 are engraved on the ends of the teeth of the type disk in the usual fashion and in the recesses between the teeth are engraved indiso eating characters |24 which, when observed by the operator at the front of the marking head, indicate the particular printing character |22 which is in marking position at the bottom of the type disk. Inasmuch as the type disk |88 is the 85 one which needs to be changed most frequently and since the run of sizes will ordinarily include half sizes, the type disks |88 and ||8 have been arranged for operation together in the general manner described in Letters Patent of the United 88 l States No. 980,588, granted February 21, 1911, on an application of F. W. Merrick, but differing therefrom in details. The general arrangement is such that by oscillating a handle |28 from front to back through a short arc, the two disks |88'l 88 and I|8 may be moved to provide4 at each oscillation a vfull-size number, such as size 4, and then a half-size number', such as size 4%, and then the next full-size number, such as size 5.

(Fig. 3') which surrounds the sleeve 84 immediatelybeside the half-size disk I|8 and which hasl pivotaily attached to it a pawl |38 provided with a tooth |82 for engagementv between two of the pawl is pivoted to` the plate |28 at |34 and is provided with an open-slotted portion |86 which coacts with a reduced section of a washer |31 on the cross rod |38 on which the hub |39 of the above-mentioneddetents (attached to the handles ||4) are mounted. The position ofthe pawl |30 with respect to the plate |28,is determined by means of a locking screw |40 (Fig. 5) which is threaded into the pawl and which passes through a slot |42 in the plate |28. By means of this locking screw, the pawl may, be thrown temporarily into inoperative position permitting a change in the teeth of the-half size disk ||0 to be engaged by the pawl tooth |32 so that the character used to indicate the half-sizes may be either the figure 1/2 or the figure 5, or some other symbol which the shoe manufacturer Wishes to use. Having selected the desired character, the pawl is dropped into operative position, as shown in Fig. 3, and locked there by means of the screw 40.

On opposite sides of the size disk |08 are thin plates |43 and |44, each of which has ratchet teeth, these plates being secured to the type disk |08 by means of rivets |46. 'I'he teeth of these ratchet plates are radially alined with the teeth of the disk |08. Backward rotation of the type disk |08 is'prevented by means of a special detent |50 pivoted on the rod |38 and having an end portion |52 which is held against the teeth of theratchet plate |44 by means of a coiled spring |54 which rests against a corrugated rod |56 (Fig. 5) extending'transversely of the head to receive this and'the other springs cooperating with the detents whose handles have been shown at ||4. The detent |50 is made shorter than the other detents and has desired to have the movement of the size disk |08 progressive in a single direction. In previous constructions, this .detent |50 has cooperated with the toothed periphery of the type disk and, consequently, has dragged over the engraved characters |22 thereon, thereby wearing these the thin plate |44, desired, and does not rub on the engraved characters at all. To prevent lateral displacement of the end |52 with respect to the thin ratchet plate |44, the lower end |52 of the detent has a cross stud |58, .an enlarged portion |60 of which is provided with a terminal flange |62 which cooperates with the opposite side face of the type disk |08 to hold the end of the detent in alinement with the ratchet plate |44. The design and dimensions of the ratchet plate |44 are such, however, that the enlarged portion |60 of this stud can never contact with the engraved characters |22 but will be raised above those characters as the size disk is rotated.

To effect a step-by-step rotation of the size disk |08, an operating pawl |64 has been provided which is pivotally mounted on the lower end of the thin plate |28 by means of a screw stud |66, this stud being held in position by means of a nut |88 (Fig. 5). Surrounding the stud |66 is a coiled spring |69, one arm of which rests on a bar |10, which passes through a slot in the plate |28 and is secured to the outer end of the pawl |64, and the other arm of which is bent at |12 (Figs. 3 and 7) an opening |14-(Fig. 3) in the plate |28. The end of the pawl |64 cooperates with the ratchet plate |43 and is held in alinement therewith by means of a stud |14 having a anged end porno handle because it is tion |16 which overlaps the periphery of the sire disk |08 and coacts with the other face thereof. If, then, the handle |26, shown in Fig. 3, is pulled to the right, as viewed in that figure, the

pawl |64 will engage the radial face of one oi' the 5 teeth on the ratchet plate |43 anrl'cause a clockwise rotation of the size disk |08 with the half-v size disk ||0. During this movement, the detent |50 will ride over theI inclined surface of. the ratchet plate |44 (Fig. 3) and fall into the next 10 notch of that plate so that when the Vreverse oscillation of the handle |26 is effected, the detent |50 will hold the size disk and allow the operating pawl |64 to ride over the next tooth of the ratchet plate |43 on the other side of the 15 size disk preparatory to the next reverse oscillation and, hence, forward movement of the type disk. It will be understood that the half-size disk is moved back and forth with each movement of the handle |28 and that, in one position', 20 it will print a character'such as the number V2 while, in the other position, it will not print at all.

Since it frequently is desired to do three-line marking, the head is provided with a plate 25 extending transversely thereof at the rear side and provided with a cartridge heating unit |82. Leads from this and the unit |20 are carried through a junction box |84 attached by screws to g the side of the head and, thence, through a cable 80' |86 (Fig. 1) to a switch box |88 having a pilot light |90 and a switch |92. The plate |80 is provided with a groove |94 extending lengthwise. of the head for the reception of the rear edge of a name plate |96 having engraved thereon the 85 trade-mark |98 of a particular manufacturer or any other suitable and desired legend. 'I'he upper surface of this plate is grooved at 200 to receive the head of a stud 202 (Figs. 3 and 4) and is held in position by means of a pivoted latch 40 The thin end portions 208 of this may be depressed against the tension of supporting springs 220 by pressing against a non-metallic heat-insulated nger piece 222 on the slidable gages a wear plate 228 attached to the crossbar 2|8 of the slidable frame and is resiliently held 05 in that position by a spring 230 coiled about a rod 232 in the hanger and engaging a cross flange 234 near the upper portion of said hanger. Whenspring 238 which is attached to the insulated bar 222 and to a pin 240 on' the hanger. In case the operator forgets torelease this latch before starting the machine, it

loose type pieces 50' will be automatically 15- v held in operative gagement with a surface 244 at the rearwardly projecting end of the latch, it` being remembered that the hanger i4 is first movedupwardiy to ink the type before it moves downwardly to print the work.

The head l2 is provided with a cross rod 288 which engages the upper surface of the outer ends of the type pieces and serves as an abutment for them. At the same the typeA pieces are provided with curved surfaces 252 adapted to rest at the bottom of the spaces between the projecting teeth of the corresponding type disks. 'Ihis will brins the-char acter 254 on the type piece in close proximity to the characters |22 at the bottom of the type disks and also to the same level as that of the latter characters and the characters |88 on the name plate |88. The type pieces 2N, while readily interchangeable on the crossbar 2l4 on the sliding frame, nt closely enough thereon so that they are not readily displaced during the re setting operation and, when the sliding frame is released and the type pieces are brought up against the type disks at one end and the abutment bar 258 at the other end, they are firmly position. 0n the front surface 258 of each type piece is engraved a facsimile of the character 284 which is to be printed and this, being in full view of the operator, enables ready selection and interchange of the type pieces. The forward ends of these pieces are notched thereby to provide a small projection 258 which may readily be grasped by tweezers lheld in the hands of the operator when it is desired to lift a hot type piece from the bar 2|4 and change it.

For quick operation of the machine, it is necessary that the spare type `pieces shall be preheated so that it will not be necessary to wait until they have assumed the temperature of the adjacent type disk by conduction. To this end, the machine is provided with a preheater 218 supported on a bracket 212 and comprising a casing within which there is a pancake-shaped 4electric heating unit surmounted by a metallic type-supporting chase 214. This type chase has side plates 211 and a, series of cross ribs 218 corresponding n dimension to the crossbar 214 of the sliding frame so that the type pieces 2|8 and anyspacers 218 that may be employed therewith may be mounted on these ribs and be preheated to a temperature' several degrees higher than the sleeve 94. Ledges 288, provided adjacent both sides of the ribs 218%, contact with bottom surfaces 282 and the characters 284 on the type pieces and accelerate the transfer of heat to these pieces.

Any desired character on a type disk may be brought into operative position by lifting a heat-insulated hand the rotation of the keyed together sleeves 88 and 84 and the turning by friction of the released type disk. Having selected the proper type pieces 2|8 and mounted them on the crossbar 2I4, spacers clamped tothe bar to hold the type pieces in position. The size disk will then be moved to the desired `position by oscillations of the handle |26. It will be observed from Fig.- 1 that the machine is assembled to include another such osciliatable handle |21 other type disk, as for match marking, which is time, the inner ends of.

where there is someto be setk frequently. The work support Il will be adjusted to a plane exactly parallel to the marking characters on the type disks in their printing position by turning the screw I8 and thereby swinging the supporting arm' Il. slightly up and down. Then, as the operator depreases the treadle attached to the treadle rod fthe type head will be inked from the ribbon 48 and make an impression on work supported on the pad I8 of the work support. The dwell of the printing characters on the work may be increased by screwing up the work support by the hand wheel 88.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States is:

1. In a marking machine, a marking head, a marking head carrier for moving the marking head in a predetermined path froml a iixed outer limit toward a ilxed inner limit, power-operated means, a rigid member of predetermined length interconnecting the power-operated means and the marking head carrier arranged to move the carrier in one direction, said member being slidably mounted at one of its points of connection, a spring interposed between the power-operated means and the carrier for moving the carrier in a direction opposite to the movement caused by the rigid member, and means for adjusting the tension of the spring without changing the fixed outer limit of movement of the marking head.

. 2. In a marking machine, a marking head having heated marking members, a walking beam for moving the marking head in a predetermined path from a ilxed outer limit toward a fixed inner limit, power-operated means, a pitman interconnecting the power-operating means and the walking beam for moving the walking beam in one direction, said pitman being slidably mounted at one `of its points of connection, means for limiting the sliding movement of the pitman in one direction to fix the outer limit oi movement of the marking head, a force transmitting spring interposed between the poweroperated means and the walking beam for moving the walking beam in a direction opposite to the movement caused by the pitman, means for adjusting the tension of the spring to vary the force transmitted to the marking head without changing the flxed outer limit of movement of the marking head, and a work-support disposed in the path of movement of the marking head and adjustable toward and away from the'nxed outer limit of movement of the marking head to vary the dwell of the heated marking members -in contact with a work piece on the work support.

3. In a marking machine, a marking head having heatedmarking members, a walking beam for moving the marking head in a predetermined path from a fixed outer limit toward a ilxed inner limit, power-operated. means, blocks pivotally supported, one on the power-operated means and one on the walking beam, a pitman interconnecting said blocks comprising a headed rod connected to one block and slidably mounted on the other block, a spring associated with the rod for holding the last-mentioned -block against the head of the rod, screwmeans for adjusting the tension of the spring without changing the fixed outer limit of travel of the marking head, and a work-support disposed in the path of movement of the marking headand adjustable toward and away from the fixed outer limit of movement of the head to vary the'dwell of the heated marking aaoasoe members in contact with a work piece on the work-support.

4. In a marking machine, a toothed type disk rotatably mounted in the machine, the ends of the teeth on said disk being provided with printing characters, and a pawl for said disk st radvdling the periphery thereof and having a portion disposed between adjoining printing characters when in its holding position, said disk being provided withmeans for lifting theportionof the pawl disposed between adjoining printing characters over the printing characters as relative rotation is produced between the disk and the-pawl. 5. In a marking machine, a type disk having printing characters on its periphery, means for supporting said disk for selective rotary movement, a ratchet formed at one side of the disk, a pawl associated with the ratchet, and means on the pawl straddling the periphery of thel disk and constructed and arranged to cooperate with the opposite side ofthe disk to hold the pawl in alinement with the ratchet.

6. In a marking machine, a support, a type disk rotatably mounted onthe support and provided with peripheral printing characters, a ratchet associated with one side of the disk and having teeth which are positioned in a predetermined relation to the characters, and a pawl engaging said ratchet, said pawl having a portion which extends across the periphery of the disk and engages the other side thereof,v said ratchet being constructed and arranged to lift the pawl radially beyond the peripheral charac-- ters thereby to avoid damage to said characters.

7. In a marking machine, a support, a type disk rotatablymounted on the support having peripheral teeth bearing marking characters, a

ratchet on one side of the type disk and having teeth associated with the teeth of the disk, a pawl cooperating with the ratchet, a rod n said pawl extending transversely of the disk, and a ange on the rod engaging the other side of the disk. f

8. In a marking machine, a head provided with a plurality of toothed type disks having peripheral printing character an abutment extending across said type disks, a type supporting frame movably mounted on the head and having a bar substantially parallel to the axis of the-type disks and adapted to support individual type pieces, and means for moving said bar to a position where the type pieces are pressed at one end against the type disks and at the other end against the abutment.

9. In a marking machine, a marking head having printing characters mounted thereon, abutments adjacent to said printing characters, and a movably mounted type-piece-supporting bar positioned near the lower part of said head and lying between said abutments, said type Piece supporting bar being movable to a position adjacent to said abutments where type pieces positioned on the bar are held against said abutments.

10. In a marking machine, a marking head movable up and down toward and away from the Work, said head being provided with marking characters, and means for supporting a row of interchangeable type pieces in marking position on the head comprising a bar of polygonal cross section extending alongside said head near the lower portion thereof, a movable support for said bar slidable heightwise of the head and resilient means for moving said bar toward the head whereby type pieces -frictionally positioned on the upper side of said bar when `the latter is in depressed position will be raised by said resilient means into contact with the marking head and held in position adjacent to the marking characters thereon. n

11. In a marking machine, a marking head movable up and down into and out of contact with the work, said head comprising type disks rotatable about a substantially `horizontal axis to provide a row of characters at the bottom oi the disks, a carrier for loose type pieces movably positioned on said head'and comprising an elongated bar parallel to the axis of the type disks and having a greater heightwise cross-sectional dimension than its corresponding widthwise dimension, means for holding said carrier in depressed'position'below the head to receive deeply notched type pieces dropped over the bar. and resilient means for moving said carrier toward the head to bring the characters on the type pieces into the plane of the characters at the bottom ofthe type disks.

12. In a marking machine, a marking head movable up-and-down into and out of contact with the work, said head comprising type disks rotatable about a substantially horizontal axis to provide a row of characters at the bottom of the disks, a carrier for loose type pieces movably positioned on said head and comprising an elongated bar parallel to the axis of the type disks and having a greater height-wise cross-sectional dimension than its corresponding width-wise dimension, means for holding said carrier in depressed position below the head to receive deeply notched type pieces dropped over the bar, resilient means for moving said carrier toward the head to bring the characters on the type pieces into the plane of the characters at the bottom of the type disks, and an abutment for the upper vfaces of the type pieces running parallel to the carrier bar and in front of the same.

13. In amarking machine, a marking head comprising a plurality of toothed type disks having printing characters on the ends of the teeth thereof and adapted to be brought into alinement to provide a row of marking characters, a plurality ofloose type pieces, and means for supporting thesepieces in alinement to provide another row of characters parallel to the selected row on the disks, said means comprising an abutment on the head extending alongside the disks, a movable type-piece-supporting mem- 'ber positioned between the abutment and the type disks, and resilient means for holding said type-piece-supporting member against the type pieces to press one end of each type piece into a recess between the successive teeth of a disk and the other end against the abutment.

14. In a marking machine, a type piece havving a printing character on its under side and an end surface facing the operator and provided with a corresponding character visible to the operator, said type piece also having a lip adjacent to the latter character-bearing portion thereby to aid the operator in grasping the type piece.

15. In a marking machine, a marking head having printing members, means for oscillating printing members into con- I said head to carry the tact with a piece of work, a frame movably mounted on the head and adapted tosupport interchangeable type pieces, spring means forV moving said frame to operative position adjacent to the head, a latch for holding the frame in inoperative position with the type pieces below the head, and means operative to release said latch prior to engagement oi the type pieces with the work.

16.v In a marking machine, a movable carrier, a type head supported on said carrier for movement toward and away `from the work, marking members on the head, `a type-piece-supporting member slidably mounted on the head for movement to an inoperative podtion permitting interchange of the type pieces carried thereby, resilient means for moving the supporting member to operative position in which the type pieces are supported by the head, a latch for holding said member` in inoperative position, and means for releasing said latch at the commencement of the cycle of operation of the machine and before the type pieces are -brought into engagement with the work.

i7. In a marking machine; a type chase comprising a plurality of upstanding ribs designed to support loose type pieces having notches iitting the ribs, said raced relation. and means for heating the ribs.

18. In a marking machine, a type chase; a

plurality of members thereon arranged in terraced relation, each of said members comprising an upstanding rib, said ledge being adapted to support a porribs being mounted in terledges. rib and a ledge beside the tion of a type-piece notchto receive the rib, andmeans for heating said terraced members.

19. Inapreheater lwith amarkingma' chinehav'ingabaradaptedtompportslotted 20. Inamarkingmachinecomprisinglunari--l ing head having marking characters positioned thereon in marking position and a bar supporting slotted type pieces with -their characters in the same plane as said marking characters, a

type 'chase for preheating said slotted type pieces,

said type chasehaving ribs shaped similarly to the supporting bar for supporting the slotted type pieces and heated ledges thereon having the same relation to said-ribs as the plane oi the characters bears to the bar of the machine whereby characters of type pieces 'placed on the ribs are disposed in juxtaposition to the heated CHARLES-E. EDWARDS. 

